Dispelling truths about our favorite dynasty

This year I would like to explore more unusual methods of mapmaking by a more diverse group of creators. Throughout history, maps by powerful nations and empires have proliferated, but maps by the less powerful actors, if they exist at all, are seldom seen. In this way, we have come to see the world through the eyes of the conquerors, but almost never through the eyes of the conquered.

In the interest of opening our eyes to new perspectives, I want to share a unique Native American map I discovered while flipping through one of the map books I received for Christmas (yes, I got more than one). This map was drawn up by a chieftain of the Catawba tribe that resided in what would become the Southeastern United States. At the time of the map’s creation in 1721, though, this land was being colonized by the British. The British settlements hugged the…